


A Servant of Two Masters

by iwanttobeyoursnow



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-04-08
Updated: 2013-04-08
Packaged: 2017-12-07 22:37:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,634
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/753877
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iwanttobeyoursnow/pseuds/iwanttobeyoursnow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Louis Tomlinson is a young wizard who arrives in the kingdom of Camelot after his mother arranges for him to stay with the court physician, Simon. He discovers that the king, Robin Styles, has outlawed magic and imprisoned the last great dragon deep under the kingdom. The dragon tells Louis that he plays an important role: to protect Robin’s son, Harry, who will bring forth a great kingdom. When Louis meets Harry, he believes that he is an arrogant bully and Harry, likewise, has a less than stellar opinion of Louis. Louis must keep his magic secret or face being executed by Robin. Louis takes a job as Harry’s personal servant in the castle in order to keep a closer eye on the teenage prince. Zayn is the head knight of Camelot, and the closest thing that Harry has to a real friend within the castle. Liam is Robin’s ward who suffers from terrible nightmares, and is cared for by his personal servant and close friend, Niall."<br/>—taken from Wikipedia with the necessary adjustments</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. (Prologue)

The scintillating sunlight streamed down, draping over the entire city of Camelot. A young boy stood on a hilltop nearby, the castle of the radiant main city in complete view. He breathed in deeply, filling his lungs entirely with the crisp morning air before beginning his hike down the hill and into the heart of the great city. Louis Tomlinson, a young peasant from the land of Ealdor, had set off the previous morning headed for his new life in this magnificent kingdom. His mother, Jay, had sent him to live with an uncle of hers for a while. Louis was to be trained and in the guard of the physician of the royal court, Simon.

As Louis trudged down the muddy hill, he took advantage of the ample time he had in his possession to admire all of the scenery surrounding him. Insects of all sort flittered past him, busy going about their morning routines, as he admired the births of the budding flowers. The trees around him created a path for him to walk through, sheltering him from some of the harsh rays of the sun but not ridding Louis of the engulfing warmth that the sun provided him with. A grin was playing across Louis’ lips as he made his way toward his new home.

All of a sudden, a muted shriek pierced through the peaceful quiet that had settled upon the forest. Louis stopped in his tracks as his eyes quickly found the source of the heart-wrenching cries. Turning around, he came to realise that the noise had come from a small bird’s nest resting rather close to the ground. On his approach, Louis was able to see a baby bird had fallen out of its nest onto the unforgiving terrain of the forest floor.

Louis knelt down next to the bird, examining it closely. Pulling back, keeping his eyes trained on the bird, he muttered “suscitabo” and willed the bird’s path to safety in his mind. Slowly, the bird was raised from the dirty ground and guided back into its nest, away from harm. As the tiny bird floated back into its home, Louis was able to observe the way its wing stuck out at an awkward angle, informing the young boy that he still had some work to do.

Acknowledging the fact that Louis still could not touch the young bird in fear of its mother abandoning it, he decided to go about it again through his magic. He spent a few moments trying to decipher which spell would be best suited for such an occasion before finally settling on “accipere omnes iniuriam”. Slowly before him, the wing slid back into its original place, a small squeak being let out by the bird. Louis had a moment of panic, fearing he had done something wrong at the birds obvious discomfort to his spell, but not a minute later, the bird shot up onto its two feet and began to chirp in acceptance. Louis allowed himself a few more moments staring at the young bird he had just saved before hopping back up onto his own feet and continuing his trek down to the castle and his inevitable fate.


	2. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A.N. The small speech that the mother gives may sound familiar to you, as it has been taken verbatim from the show. I do not claim to have written it, and all credit goes to the writers of Merlin.

As Louis descended the last hill down into Camelot, he couldn’t help but feel elated, as well as extremely out of place. The city buzzed in the early morning with townspeople going about their daily routines while Louis waltzed through the busy centre in search of his new home. It didn’t take him long to realise that all he had to do was follow the majority of the large mob of people in order to reach his goal, all headed towards the heart of the kingdom, where the entrance to the great castle laid. Somewhere in that great castle, Louis was to find his new guardian, his great uncle Simon.

Once the young boy reached the castle, he was entirely lost as to what his next course of action would be. However, realising it would be better than getting hopelessly lost within the castle walls, Louis decided it would be best to enquire the way to the physician’s home of one of the copious loitering guards.

“Excuse me, sir, you wouldn’t happen to know where I could find Simon? He’s the court physician, and he’ll be expecting me very soon. I wouldn’t normally ask, I just feel as though I might get lost and really don’t want to be late.”

Louis himself thought he had been rather polite in asking the guard directions to his new home, but the man clad in armour thought anything but that. “What did you say to me, boy?”

“Sorry, I was just wondering where I might find the court physician, sir.” Louis paused, only earning him another disbelieving and un-approving look off the guard, accompanied by scoffing from his nearby eavesdropping mates.

“And why in the hell should I tell you that, eh boy.” The man’s voice was dripping with loathing toward this new young stranger. Louis was honestly baffled as to what he could have done to piss off someone so quickly by simply asking, rather respectfully might he add, where something was to a man who looked more bored than he would be in a two-hour lecture about turnips.

“Don’t mind them! They’re all pricks ‘round here. Come on, mate, I can show you the way. I was just headed down there myself.” A graceful voice laced with some sort of accent floated towards Louis. The newcomer turned around to be met face-to-face with a smiling blonde lad with brilliant blue eyes. He wore simple clothes, suggesting he was employed rather low-down in the castle, but wore a genuinely warming smile on his face nonetheless. Louis couldn’t help but return the grin as he graciously accepted the blonde lad’s offer.

“Thanks mate, I’d be totally lost without you.”

“Nah, it’s no problem! Like I just said, I’m only headed down there meself now, aren’t I? So, why not show you the way while I’m at it? I’m Niall, by the way.” Niall slung his arm around the new boy’s shoulder as he swiftly turned him away from the belligerent guards. “And you are?”

“I’m Louis. Erm… Louis Tomlinson.”

Niall chuckled at the brunette’s nervousness. “Well, Louis, Louis Tomlinson, it’s great to meet you. What brings you to Camelot, might I ask? And to the physician of the royal court no less?”

“Erm well, my mum thought it would be best if I were to move out of my old town. It’s rather small you see, and she feels as though I’m wasting some of my… talents there, let’s just say. So, she shipped me off to live with the her great uncle, who just so happens to be Simon.”

Niall’s mouth formed a sort of ‘O’ in understanding as the pair made their way down numerous winding staircases and twisting corridors down to the lower levels of the castle. “Special talents, eh?”

“Yeah… talents.” Niall shot Louis a cheeky wink, and Louis was grateful that the blonde lad understood and respected his desire for secrecy. To be honest, Louis was just shocked that he had been in the city for less than ten minutes and had already almost spilt his deepest, darkest secret to the first boy he met. Who worked for the King, no less! The very man who would have Louis executed if he were to ever find out that Louis possessed such special gifts as that of magic. 

The rest of the way to the physician’s quarters was spent in a comfortable silence between the pair, as Niall le the way through the all too familiar castle. Louis could only gaze at the enormity of it all as they wandered, and felt rather small and insignificant in something so grand and important.

It took them only a few minutes to reach Simon’s home and workspace, and Louis couldn’t be more thankful. He had been carrying all of his belongings on his back for a few days now and grew extremely tired from it all. He wanted nothing more than to take ten minutes to place his possessions down and just sit down and relax on a real bed instead of the harsh land of the forest. Niall opened the door to the physician’s with no more than a quick rap of knuckles against the wood, without even waiting for a response. However, he didn’t do it in a rude way say, more something that appeared in his daily routine. The blonde lad stepped aside in order to allow Louis to pass by him and into the new space, Niall following closely behind.

The room was rather large, housing many tables scattered with an abundance of things. Mostly to do with potion making and remedies, Louis thought. The walls were unable to be seen behind the multitude of books lining every inch of them. It was all rather messy and hectic, but to Louis, it felt nothing short of home. He smiled to himself as he took in his new surroundings, Niall watching the young traveller in approval as he had already begun to settle in. Only one thing was missing now…

“SIMON!” Niall yelled, giving not a second thought to whoever else in the castle he may be disturbing with his shrieks. “Simon, someone’s here to see you! Come on mate, not nice to keep your guests waiting.”

“Alright, alright, calm down Niall! I’m coming, whoever this person is better be damned important or I’m goi—“

Simon stopped in his tracks as he entered the vast space and allowed his eyes to settle on the two young boys stood before him. His eyes spent less than a second on Niall before focusing all of his attention to the newcomer. That rich brown hair, sparkling blue eyes, and blinding smile. Simon could tell exactly who this new boy was without even having to ask.

“Louis! Louis, my boy! You’re early!” Simon wasted no time in scampering across the room, skillfully dodging tables and benches in the process, before engulfing the teenager in a welcoming hug, which Louis graciously reciprocated. He had barely been able to remember his great uncle before now, but seeing him after all these years, looking practically the exact same, had brought everything back to him.

“I know, I decided to set out a few days earlier than expected because I couldn’t wait to come see you again, Si!”

Simon pulled back from the boy he was embracing, holding him at arms length as he inspected Louis’ face, taking in every single change that had occurred over their twelve years apart from one another. The years had been kind to his great nephew. Louis had allowed his hair to grow out much longer than he had when he was just seven years old, and the missing teeth in his smile had been replaced. He had grown much larger all around, and had even begun to build up some muscle tone, which could easily be seen through his thin shirt. However, Louis managed to keep his rather small frame, and those enormous cerulean orbs remained exactly how they had been, full of playful childish mischief and mystery.

“I’ve missed you greatly, my boy. I can’t believe how long it’s been. Your mother really shouldn’t have kept you from me for this long. Well, that’s of no matter now, because you’re here. Oh, you don’t know just how happy that’s made me, lad.”

“It’s great to be here with you, Si. I’ve been looking forward to moving down to Camelot my entire life. I just can’t believe I’m actually here now! We’re going to have so much fun together.” Louis flashed his radiant smile at his uncle once more before a frown furrowed his upon his face. “Oh hang on, I almost forgot.” Suddenly, Louis dropped the hefty bag that had lived on his back for the past few days and began to rummage through in search of something. A few moments later, the young lad pulled back however, proudly extending his hand, which was now clutching an envelope, which had been addressed to the physician. “From mum,” Louis explained before Simon accepted it with a grin, placing it in one of the pockets lining his attire.

Finally, Simon remembered that the pair were not alone currently and turned toward the blonde boy who had been waiting by the door the entire time, watching the reunion in quiet respect for the two men. “Ah Niall, I suppose I have you to thank for this one not getting lost on his first day in the castle, eh?”

Niall merely nodded and shot the older man his signature grin, before stating his purpose for visiting the man in the first place. “Well, I just came down here for Liam’s sleeping draft. He’s having trouble again, and it’s the only thing that helps in any way.” Simon’s face turned grave at this news, and he quickly spun his back on the two young boys, searching through a nearby cabinet for something.

“Yes, I feared it was getting worse, so I’ve been making up drafts for the boy more often than usual, just in case so I’d have some at the ready.” He returned to Niall with two small vials of coloured liquid. “This one,” he stated, “isn’t as strong. It he’s just having the usual trouble, this will suffice.” Simon handed Niall the vial filled with a light violet mixture. “However, if he’s worse than usual, you may need to use this,” Simon now handed the boy the vial with the deep blue liquid, “but only a little, you hear? It is extremely strong, and if too much is consumed unnecessarily; nothing pleasant can come of it. Understand?” Niall nodded his response. “Good lad. Tell Liam he can always come down to see me himself if he needs anything else, alright?”

“Alright. Thanks, Simon.” Niall shot the older male one last quick grin before slipping out of the room and leaving the two freshly reunited relatives alone to catch up with one another.

——

“Mate, come on! You’ve got to get to practice today.” Zayn had come to find the young prince after he had missed two days of practice with his knights. You couldn’t really have practice without the lad, considering he was supposed to be leading it and all. “Harry, you have to get a move on! They’re not going to wait round forever!” Still no response. “Harry, I will go to the King about this. Don’t think I won’t!”

That seemed to grab his attention. “You wouldn’t dare, Malik.”

“Oh, I don’t know Haz…” Most people really would have found this situation astonishing. A knight of Camelot attempting to drag the prince of from his bed, while using affectionate nicknames as if they were friends. But the truth is, they were friends. Best friends. Zayn had spent a lot of time in the royal castle when he was younger due to his father, and the pair had inevitably met sometime when Harry was around seven, and Zayn eight. The two had gotten along almost instantaneously and soon became firm friends. Harry looked up to Zayn as his older brother as well as his best mate. Most people in the castle looked down upon the two boys’ relationship, as no one thought it was right and proper for a ‘commoner’ to be so close to the prince, especially when Zayn was the only one who did not refer to the young boy as ‘sir’, or ‘Prince Harry’, or Harry’s absolute worst, ‘your royal highness’. But Harry couldn’t care less what others thought of him and Zayn. Zayn was his best friend, and had been for ten years. And as far as he was concerned, it was going to stay that way.

“Zayn, don’t you fucking dare tell Robin anything or… I’ll… I’ll have you executed!”

Zayn only let out a sharp laugh at his friend’s words, knowing the young boy was attempting to cling onto anything in order to be able to stay in bed undisturbed a while along. However, at this, Zayn just decided it was time to apply his knight skills. It took barely any effort to grab onto either side of the young prince and physically drag him from the enormous bed.

——

“I want this to serve as an example to every single one of you.” Robin’s brash voice filled the entire courtyard, gaining everyone’s attention that he did not already possess. Louis halted on his way to deliver his first batch of medicine of the day. Harry and Zayn stopped their messing about on the way down to their daily training practice. Liam stood watching from his window, eyes filled with remorse and upset as Niall delayed close behind him. “This creature will be sent straight back down into the fiery depths of hell, where he belongs!”

Robin gestured toward the unfortunates who had the horrid job of dragging the condemned prisoner to the already assembled pile of wooden poles. “All forms of witchcraft within my kingdom is banned and has been so for many yeas. Anyone found practicing or aiding those who practice in this foul business shall be executed through burning.” Robin continued to address the crowd who watched with baited breath as the young male, no older than mid-twenties was strapped to the great wooden death sentence. 

Once the accused man was strapped down, the crowd could only observe with bated breath as one of the guards stood forward to set the entire contraption on fire. As the flames slowly began to surround the defenseless young boy, screams permeated the air, filling all onlookers with a sense of pity and remorse. All was silent as the boy screeched his final breaths out, and after a few minutes of horrifying shrieks, it all came to an end. Everything became eerily silent, and no one dared move nor speak.

“Many years ago, I banned the evils of this land,” Robin spoke from his place on the balcony above his people. “Today is the twenty year anniversary of that wonderful day. With the execution of the last known warlock who has been plaguing this great land, let the celebrations of this marvelous day… begin!”

All of a sudden, a new sort of shrieking erupted from somewhere within the mass of people. It was more like a painful wailing noise, and it chilled Louis right to the bone. An elderly woman began pushing her way through the crowd toward the still-burning wooden pile. “There is only one evil in this land, and it is not magic. It is you! With your hatred and your ignorance. You took my son, and I promise you, before these celebrations are over, you will share my tears. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, and a son for a son!”

Without wasting another second, the woman before the crowd erupted in a cloud of blue smoke and flames, leaving those staring behind her in wonder. Everyone stood shocked, the meaning of what the elderly witch had said still reverberating within their minds. Even Robin seemed to take a moment to stare after the place where the woman had been previously standing before spinning on his heel and entering back into his castle, a small army of knights following closely behind. Soon the remainder of the crowd dispersed, leaving what was left of the corpse of the young warlock alone on the charcoaled pile of sticks.

——

“Come on! Keep moving, will you!” Harry yelled towards one of his servants. “This is supposed to be moving target practice!” The young boy stood behind the shield attempted to move his stubby legs faster while carrying the hefty protection. The prince continued to throw small daggers at the shield while the boy ran terrified behind it. Harry had the knights behind him in stitches as they all laughed at the pathetic excuse for a man in front of them. The boy could barely hold the shield up when standing still, and was having extreme difficulty trying to move whilst lugging it in front of him to protect himself from the flying knives. “Don’t stop, you idiot! I said, keep moving!”

Louis had been on his way back to Simon after delivering one of the many potions from that day before halting at the sight before him. Louis could see a quavering boy as he tried his best to run whilst protecting himself from the weapons being hurled his way. The young warlock looked to the source of the servant-boy’s misery, only to be met with the sight of a boy roughly his age, with wild untamed curls resting atop his head. The boy’s eyes were full of joy as he tormented the poor boy before him. He was grinning unashamedly at the weaker boy’s pain with a sinister smile that shot hatred throughout Louis’ entire being. The curly-haired lad donned armour emblazoned with the crest of Camelot. ‘A pompous knight… great’, Louis thought to himself as he took in the sight.

“Alright, don’t you think he’s had enough of that now?”

Suddenly, the onslaught of daggers being thrown at the young servant halted as the servant’s tormentor turned to face the newcomer. Harry’s deep and throaty laugh filled the atmosphere once more as he caught sight of the boy stood in front of him. “Excuse me?”

“I said, don’t you think he’s had enough now? Come on mate, lay off him.”

Harry looked absolutely dumbfounded as Louis started to mouth off to him. Who did this scrawny fucker think he was? “And who do you think you are? Mate? I am not your friend, whoever you are. And you are certainly not permitted to address me as such.”

“I should hope not, I’d like to think I have the capability of keeping better people than the likes of you in my company.”

Harry stepped forwards, approaching the young boy stood there insulting him. His blood began to boil throughout his body, quickly becoming infuriated with the outspoken lad before him. “Well, boy, you should be so lucky to keep me in your company.”

Louis was unable to contain his own anger any longer, and made to swing his fist at the head of the taller boy. However, Harry saw what was coming, and before Louis could do anything further, the prince grabbed his hand, twisting Louis’ arm behind the boy’s back and holding him there in a lock. “You know… I could have you locked up for that, mate.”

Louis scoffed at the larger boy’s unrealistic threats. “And who do you think you are? The bloody King?”

“No… but I am the bloody King’s son.”


	3. Chapter 2

“What in the hell were you thinking?! Harry Pendragon of all people! Anyone you could have chosen, it had to have been a Pendragon! I’m just glad it wasn’t Robin himself!”

Louis sighed exasperatedly. He had been over this about twenty times already, attempting to justify his actions against the young prince. “I’ve told you, Simon, he was being an absolute prat! Did you see the way he was treating that young boy? I couldn’t just turn a blind eye!”

“You couldn’t just turn a blind eye? Of course you bloody well could! He’s a prince, and because of your… condition, you should be staying as far away from the Pendragon family as you can! Let alone getting on the wrong side of one of them.”

At this point, Louis decided there was little point in arguing further with his guardian. So instead, he rolled his eyes at the older man before storming off into his new room.

Simon watched the young warlock go with a shake of his head. He had warned the lad to be careful. He had warned him since the moment he had arrived in his quarters in Camelot. Magic was outlawed by the Pendragons, had been for many years, and if he was going to reside in Camelot as a warlock, he had better keep to himself. In his heart, Louis knew that Simon wanted only to protect him from execution, but still, it was difficult to go about his business unminded with someone like Harry Pendragon around.

Louis had only spoken to the lad for a brief few minutes, but had already grown to view the boy as insufferable. Sure, he was the second most powerful person within the Kingdom, but that gave him no justification to act like a royal prick to his subjects. Louis was disgusted by the way the prince treated those who served him and was unable to stand idly by and watch people suffer at the hands of the young Pendragon for no reason other than they hadn’t been born into nobility.

From his new room, Louis could hear Simon mumbling as he fiddled around with his medicines. He hadn’t meant to cause the older man so much trouble on just his first day in this new Kingdom. Louis couldn’t help but feel bad for Simon as he listened to the man’s mutterings through the thin wooden door. Maybe he should have gone easier on the bloke, or even thank him, he did after all save him from spending the next few nights in the cells of the castle. However, Louis suddenly found himself yawning as his eyelids began to grow heavier with each passing second. Thanking Simon would have to wait until the following morning. The days events had taken their toll on Louis, and he found himself soon sinking down into the mattress, relishing the comfort it provided for his exhausted body.

——

Louis woke the next morning to the warmth of sunlight that shimmered in through a small window of his room, accompanied by the sound of birds chirping to one another, the smell of freshly baked bread filling his nostrils, and one extremely irritable Simon.

“Still in bed, Louis?! Do you have any idea what time it is? I thought I told you that you’d have to be up early to deliver some medicine to certain clients! They have to get to work to, you know? They can’t hang about all day waiting for a bloody delivery boy because he was too lazy to get his stupid arse out of bed!” What was that about thanking Simon? Yeah, that definitely was not going to happen in the near future.

“Alright, alright, I’m up! Give me twenty minutes to get ready and have some breakfast, then I’ll be off, yeah?”

“Twenty minutes?!” Simon shrieked, in a very immasculine manner might Louis add. “You’ll have no more than ten, and just be thankful I’m giving you that much!”

Simon exited the warlock’s chambers with a huff, once again mumbling to himself, as he began to potter around in the kitchen preparing some form of food that Louis could shove down his throat before setting off for the day.

Louis only groaned as he heaved his defeated body from the stiff mattress, causing it to crack as he stretched the sore muscles of his body out. He took a moment to allow his body to adjust to moving around after spending so many hours in sleep, before rapidly shedding his nightclothes and donning one of his extra sets of clothes. Knowing Simon would become even more enraged if he did not follow the strict ten minute rule he had set, Louis dragged himself from his new room and out into the rest of the home.

Louis slumped down at the kitchen table as Simon busied himself prepping food behind him. Simon was mumbling to himself, probably about Louis’ ‘stupidity’. Louis knew just to ignore the older man’s ramblings, having the common sense to realise retorting anything back to Simon would only cause more damage than good. After a few moments of an uncomfortable silence, save for random mutterings uttered by the senior, a loud slam reverberated around the room as Simon dropped a rather unappetising plate of food in front of the young warlock. The smell alone was enough to make Louis gag, as he peered down at the contents of the plate. A thick grey sludge covered the shining metal entirely, sliding across the smooth material. Inhaling a breath of air, Louis picked up his spoon before he could find time to prevent himself and drove it into the mush. Wasting no time, he pulled it right back out, now coated with some of the sludge, before steering the utensil into his open mouth. Louis could feel himself physically repel his body from the food, his face scrunching itself up in disgust as he felt the thick liquid slide unpleasantly down his throat.

Simon had been watching the young boy’s actions as he attempted to eat the inedible and could no longer hold in his amusement at Louis’ struggles as he watched the warlock involuntarily shiver in disgust as the aftertaste hit him. Deciding it was about time to put him out of his misery, Simon swooped forward and quickly replaced the plate of grey mush with one of appealing fruits and buttered bread. Louis just stared up at his mentor, a dumbfounded look plastered across his features, his mouth slightly agape as he watched the sly older man reveling in his payback.

“Hurry and eat that, Louis. You’ve got deliveries to get to.” It was one of those rare times in his life that Louis was truly at a loss as to what to say to Simon, opting to just glare at the chuckling man instead.

——

Forty minutes later, Louis found himself entirely done with deliveries for the day. Sure, there had only been about six bottles to be delivered, but he had just expected himself to be slow about it. Deciding he might as well treat himself, as two of the women he dropped medicine off for seemed quite taken with him and tipped him handsomely for his troubles, Louis found himself headed straight for the marketplace.

Passing through numerous stalls selling different variations of fresh vegetables, fruits, and meats, Louis finally made it down to the end of the marketplace, which was selling an assortment of mouth-watering sweets. Multiple arrays displaying different sorts of pastries and pies all loaded with sugar were laid out before him. Louis had no idea where to start, and soon found himself lost in it all.

Louis was only pulled out of the sugary trance when he was pushed aside by a large group of men clad from head to toe in armour and weaponry. They were attempting to clear a space in the busy street for a horse-drawn carriage to pass through, presumably on its way up to the castle. “Move aside,” was all the knights were shouting at the pedestrians, trying to keep them as far away from whomever was in the carriage as possible. “Lady Helen coming through!”

Lady Helen… Louis recognised that name. He took a few moments to allow his brain to connect a name to a face, before he remembered whom she was and why she was in Camelot. Lady Helen was a renowned singer throughout the four Kingdoms. She was best known for bringing the audience to tears as she sang before large celebratory feasts, and Camelot was having one of it’s own that evening to celebrate King Robin’s ridding of magic from the land.

Louis watched in slight disgust as the carriage rode by him and up toward the castle where the awaiting festivities were to be held later that evening. It amazed him beyond belief how much effort the royal family were willing to put in to celebrate a day full of hatred and murder.

——

“Right you lot,” Harry announced to the group of hopeful knights of Camelot stood before him, “you’ve all managed to pass the first few weeks of your initiation into this elite group of only the best knights within the land. I congratulate all of you for making it this far, but I do warn you—don’t get too comfortable. Currently there are sixteen of you, but I am expecting only half of you to actually make it through to the end. The past three weeks have been soft compared to this last week of training, and some of you have had luck on your side, some of you I have seen slacking off at points, and some of you have been working your arses off this entire time. This last week will rid the group of slackers and those who have lucked out but those who have worked their arses off, just continue doing what you’re doing, and although it will be a struggle, it will be worth it. It will take every single piece of what all of you have got to make it through to the initiation. You all have amazing potential, I’ve seen it in every single one of you, but you have to give this last week everything and anything you’ve got. Training begins in exactly one hour from now. Now, get out of my face.”

The hopeful knights disbanded once dismissed, all off to put in some last minute preparation and rest before going up against the most brutal week of their lives. As the men departed, Harry turned to face his right hand man, Zayn, before hearing a disgusted scoff behind him. Zayn’s eyebrows raised as he took in the appearance of the man stood behind the Prince who had displayed such an obvious dislike toward a royal. A large shit-eating grin appeared on the tanned boy’s face, before he burst out into a fit of laughter. Harry turned to face the person who had offended him, before being faced with the new addition to his town whom he loathed. Louis stood there, shaking his head at Harry, repulsion present in his features.

“Can I help you, Lewis was it? What are you even doing out of your little dog’s cage? I thought that was quite a suiting place for a person of your caliber.”

“Louis,” the older boy replied, ignoring the comment about how Harry had thrown him in the dungeons the day prior, not wishing to give the young prince any form of satisfaction. “And I was just… admiring the wonderful way you treat the men who do nothing but devote their entire lives to supporting and protecting your family while you stand idly by. I bet you can’t fight half as well as any of the men you’ve spent the entire morning degrading.”

It was Harry’s turn to scoff as he was momentarily stunned by Louis’ words. “And you know all about training men for brutal warfare then, do you? You’re suddenly an expert on sword fighting, are you?” Zayn remained behind Harry, who stood with a smug expression on his face, dissolving into another fit of giggles while he took in Louis’ appearance and size, knowing for sure that he had never before taken part in any sort of physical training or fighting.

Louis just held his ground, staring into the prince’s venomous green eyes.

“Care to put that to the test, young Louis?”

Louis only shrugged before he found himself lying supine on the ground, with the young prince above him and a sharp metal blade held to his throat.

Harry let out a bark of laughter before pushing down on Louis’ face, using it as a means of support to heave his armour-clad body back up to a standing position. “Pathetic,” he scoffed before hauling Louis up as well and heading straight back to the castle to, once again, throw the young warlock in one of the dungeon’s cells. 

——

“Lady Helen! What a treat it is to have you here on such a momentous occasion!” The King greeted the night’s entertainment as the singer entered the enormous throne room. “Such an honour to have you residing here with us as well throughout your stay.”

“No, sire, the honour truly is all mine.” The guest allowed a smirk to pass through her lips. “Now, I do not mean to appear rude, but I have had an extremely strenuous journey and would like to rest my throat and body so as to be on top form for tonight’s performance.”

“Yes, yes of course. I’ll have one of the maids show you to your room, have a nice rest and I look forward to your performance tonight.”

“Trust me, sire, not as much as I am.” The lady curtsied before quickly exiting the room, followed by a harried maid who struggled to keep up with the guest.

Once the pair reached one of the guests rooms, the maid pushed open the door and proceeded to turn down the large bed occupying a mere portion of the spacious room. She began to ramble slightly to the guest about singing or something, the lady wasn’t exactly listening, too preoccupied examining the display of fruits and thinking about the night before her.

Suddenly, there was a large intake of breath as the maid had apparently completed her job and had turned back to face the lady. A mirror stood beside the lady, which instead of presenting a picture of a gorgeous young woman with striking black hair and delicate features, depicted an old crone, grey strands hanging from her head with crumpled and rough features.

“You’re—“ The young maid began.

However, she was silenced by the witch’s fingers, which had taken the form of Lady Helen’s, wrapping around her throat, effectively cutting off her oxygen supply.

“Tonight is the night I will avenge my son and once again reunite Camelot with magic. And some petty little servant girl will not ruin this for me.”

The witch stood there, squeezing every ounce of breath out of the young girl’s body as she struggled below her. The witch waited for a few seconds after the maid had stopped moving, eyes flung wide open in shock, before allowing the body to drop to the floor.

——

“How many bloody times do I have to tell you, boy?! Stay away from the Prince! Is that too much to ask for your puny little brain?! To just stay away from the person who, if they knew certain things about you, you would be dead within twenty-four hours! Stupid, stupid, naïve little boy…”

“I couldn’t just stand by and not do anything, you should see how that miserable prick—“

“Just shut it, you stupid child! It does not matter what you think of Harry, he is still the Crowned Prince, and you must stay away from him at all costs! You can’t meddle with any of the royal family, especially not in your situation!”

“But—“

“But nothing!” Simon smacked Louis across the head with the book clasped in his hands. “I. Told. You. To. Stay. Away. So. Stay. Away.”

“Oww! Simon!”

Simon let out an extended and defeated sigh. “I’m sorry, Louis. But you have to listen to me in the future. Everything I say and do is in your best interest, you have to know that.”

“I do, Uncle, I do. I just… he thinks he’s so much better than everyone just because he’s royalty. He sits up there on his fucking pedestal mocking and sneering at everyone below him, even though they’ve worked fifty times harder in their lives than he ever has. Everything just comes so easily to him, and he abuses it all. It just makes me sick, and it’s difficult to just stand there, mouth shut, with a smile plastered across my face.”

Simon let out another sigh, as he fixated his gaze directly into Louis’ cerulean orbs. “I know, Louis, I know. I just don’t want you to get yourself into any trouble. I worry about you so much. You know how much they can do to you for the use of magic.”

“I know, Simon. I know. I’m sorry, I understand and really appreciate all you’ve done for me, and I hate to put you through such distress over something so trivial, especially when it’s all because of that twat.”

Simon let out an amused chuckle. “That’s enough of that now, no more slagging off of anyone in here, alright?”

“Alright, Simon.” Louis shot his elder a cheeky grin.

“Now, go off and get ready mate, we’ve got a celebratory dinner to get do.”

“Ugh, do we? I doubt I’ll even be allowed in after today…”

“Yes, Louis. It’s all about keeping up appearances, eh? And there’s as much free food as we can eat. And all you have to do is stay away from the King’s table, away from the Prince.”

“Fair point…” Louis stated before scampering off to his bedroom to change into some clean attire in preparation of the royal’s dinner.


	4. Chapter 3

As Louis entered the great hall, he couldn’t refrain from letting out a small gasp. The entire hall was decorated accordingly, fit for the celebrations of the evening. He allowed his eyes to trail along the stone walls and up to the ceiling stationed miles above him. Louis had never stood in a place quite as grandiose as this, and was absolutely astounded by its amazing architecture. The room was filled with a lively chatter from those lucky enough to attend and as he looked around at all of the guests dressed in only their best attire, he couldn’t help from feeling totally and utterly out of place. Louis himself was donned in what, in comparison to the lavish robes of the women and armour of those knights surrounding him, could be called rags. He found himself stood by the entrance of the hall staring down at his own two feet, clad in a pair of scuffed up boots he’d had for years. Back where he was from, Ealdor, he would never have even thought to go to one of these magnificent feasts, and these were honestly the finest clothes that he owned.

It was not until a bumbling blonde that nearly knocked him over came tumbling in through the doors, grin stretched across his lips, did he feel more at ease. The blonde turned to Louis to apologise before stopping in his tracks and exclaiming a quick “Louis!” and bundling the newcomer up in a tight embrace which left him feeling a bit more included in this whole affair. It was not until Niall pulled back from the hug did Louis acknowledge that the blonde was not alone. Behind him stood a brunette, who was dressed in no way like the two other boys. His shirts, pants, and shoes were clearly tailored to fit the boy and were obviously quite expensive. Completing his outfit, the brunette wore a long cloak, reaching down to the floor, which, to Louis, was a sign of his importance. However, there was something that separated the boy from all the others in the room. The brunette’s hair had been pushed to the side messily and he wore a welcoming smile on his face.

“Going to introduce me to your new friend then, Nialler?”

“Oh right, sorry Liam!” Niall turned back towards the brunette, meeting him with the same grin, which he had greeted Louis with. “This here, is Louis. He’s Simon’s nephew and is going to be living with him from now on.” Niall turned back towards Louis, gesturing to Liam as if he were showing off the boy. “And this, Louis, is Liam. He’s the King’s ward, and I am his right hand man.” Niall was clearly fond of Liam and he spoke of his job proudly.

“Simon, eh? Great man.” Liam extended a hand towards Louis, “Good to meet you then Louis! Glad to have another Cowell in Camelot.”

“Lovely to meet you, sir.” Louis nervously accepted the boy’s handshake, ignoring the mistake he had made with his name. He wasn’t supposed to be conversing with someone so high up within the castle; he was supposed to be keeping his head down. It was too dangerous for Louis, if anyone were to discover that he had magic, he was done for.

“Please, Louis. Call me Liam!” The brunette informed Louis before turning to scan the room. “I had better find the King, then. Congratulate him for this so-called merry occasion. What better way to celebrate the success of the kingdom than to have such an elaborate feast on the anniversary of so many people’s deaths?” Louis was shocked to hear the sarcasm heavily laced through Liam’s every word, and watched in awe as the brunette strolled off in order to find one of the royals.

After a few moments of Louis staring off dumbly into the sea of people, which Liam had just joined, he heard boisterous laughter break out beside him. “Mate, the look on your face right now!”

Louis waited a few more moments in order to allow the cackling blonde to calm himself down a little before he responded. “But… he’s the King’s ward. How can he say something like that about the King if he’s his ward?”

Niall’s face appeared to have wholly transformed at that. “There are things… about Liam’s past. Well, let’s just say he doesn’t hold that same hatred of magic that the King does, yeah?” Louis’ face looked nothing less than puzzled and it must have seemed like he was about to enquire further as Niall continued on, “Just leave it, yeah Louis?” And yet again, Niall’s face transformed back into the smiling bubbly boy he had been when the rest of the time Louis had known him. “Look, the feast’s about to begin! Come on,” he dragged Louis with him toward the large table lying horizontally across the front of room, perpendicular to all the others, clearly placed out specifically for the King and his closest companions. “If I stay close enough, Liam usually gives me as much of the best food as I want, and I’m sure he wouldn’t mind handing me an extra plate for you.” Niall winked at Louis as he continued to pull the older boy through the crowd of people by the arm.

Halfway through the feast, Louis found himself seated on the floor beside the King’s table with Niall and four plates of food resting on their laps. Liam always gave Niall at least two plates of food on such occasions, but had taken so well to Louis, that he was more than happy to collect some more for them. Louis had made it through one and a half of his plates piled high with what had to be the most delicious food he had ever tasted, before surrendering to his stomach’s wishes. He was absolutely fit to burst and was unable to even look at the food before him without wanting to vomit.

Niall had been chatting animatedly to Louis for the majority of the feast, but Louis honestly had not heard a word he said. The brunette couldn’t prevent his eyes from drifting along the King’s table, straight on past Robin and along to Harry who sat on the King’s right. As much as Louis hated to admit it, something about the boy fascinated him. Yes, Harry was a proper dickhead but there was something about him, which couldn’t help but draw you in. Maybe it was the way his curls fell delicately in front of his eyes and bounced with him when he laughed, maybe it was the way that his smile was one of the most contagious Louis had ever seen, crafted with dimples to make girls faint before him, or maybe it was the way that the boy’s eyes glistened with a sort of innocence, whilst maintaining a mischievous glint to them. Louis had not meant to notice all of these things about Harry, but once he had, he couldn’t help but become absolutely enraptured by the boy. He didn’t like him, of course he didn’t, Louis argued to himself. But there was something so fascinating about him, and Louis desired to discover more, even though Harry was still a right little prick.

As the festivities came to a close, King Robin stood from where he sat in the middle of the King’s table calling everyone’s attention. “I would like to take a minute to thank everyone here. I would like to thank you for coming tonight, partaking in these celebrations, and showing your support for me, as well as the love of your kingdom. I would also like to especially thank all those who have aided me in my combat against this infestation of magic, my loyal knights and of course, my wonderful son Harry.” Robin clapped a hand on Harry’s shoulder, causing Harry to grin, before continuing. “Now, as a special treat, we have managed to get the stunning Lady Helen to perform for us all as a special treat. So please welcome her so kindly ladies and gentlemen, Lady Helen!”

As the King’s announcement concluded, the roaring cheers of all of the guests encapsulated the room and the Lady made her grand entrance. She positioned herself a few metres in front of the King’s table before taking a moment to compose herself and begin to sing. At once, the entire room became silent, captivated by her voice. The song was not in English, but the beauteous melodies resounded around the room, the Lady’s voice powerful yet gentle voice reverberated against the walls of the room, creating an echo, which only added to the splendour of the rest of the performance.

Louis soon became entranced with the performance, eyes growing becoming with exhaustion. He head slowly began to weigh down on his shoulders and as he turned to rest it on the table, he noticed the same thing happening all others in the room. Even in his dazed state, Louis understood that something was wrong about the entire scenario. Cobwebs began to emerge on all of the objects and people littered throughout the room, and all remaining food turned mouldy and soiled.

Finally, Louis returned his gaze to Lady Helen, whose countenance was now smug. Hurriedly, Louis brought his hands to his ears, blocking out as best he could the detrimental lullaby. Louis watched in horror as the lady kept singing and all around him dozed off into a deep sleep. Lady Helen removed a sharp dagger from the folds of her dress, grasped in her right hand, and held it above her head. Louis stood from his position seated at the end of the table and scurried beneath the table, where he was unseen by the lady, stopping by the feet of the King.

All of a sudden, the song came to a sharp conclusion, and the lady let out a screech, “A son for a son!” She released the dagger with all of her force, headed straight towards the now-waking form of Harry.

Louis who was still crouched down beside the King, leapt to his feet and managed to knock Harry out of his chair right before the dagger cemented itself into the wood directly where the prince’s head had just been. The witch let out yet another blood-curdling screech as she realised that she had missed her target. By that time, all others in the room had came to and were picking the cobwebs that had formed off of their bodies, but jumped at the sound. All heads swiveled around to face the body of the old crone in the middle of the room, where the form of Lady Helen just was.

All of a sudden, the witch lunged forward and sped in the direction of the young prince who remained in Louis’ arms, still in a daze. Louis however, was too quick for the elderly witch. With a sharp nod of his head, the young sorcerer broke the chains of the chandelier, which hung proudly from the ceiling. The enormous metal contraption hit the ground in a matter of seconds, burying beneath it the witch. Cheers erupted throughout the dining hall as the witch was brought to her death.

The prince finally returned back to his arrogant self, pushing Louis off of him in disgust. But the King was looking at the young boy in shock and admiration. As the room settled back down, Robin stood from his throne. “My dear boy, what is your name?”

“Erm… Louis, your highness. Louis Tomlinson.”

“Well Louis, you must be rewarded for such a great deed! Saving the life of the prince, my dear son… Say, Louis what do you do here in Camelot?”

“I just arrived here actually, I came to live with my uncle, Simon.”

“Ah, of course! Well, I trust you have not found work as of yet?” Louis shook his head. “Well then boy, you must work within the castle! As the prince’s manservant, no less!”

“Father!” Harry interjected, distaste and disbelief prominent in his features. “You surely can’t be serious! We hardly know the boy and he has proven to be a nuisance in the little time he has been here.”

“Nonsense, Harold! He will take up the position of your manservant beginning tomorrow.” Harry opened his mouth to retort, but was cut off by his father. “And I want nothing more said on the matter, it’s settled!”

Robin took his seat once more at the head of the table, turning to speak to Liam, leaving Harry and Louis glaring at one another. Well, Harry glowered at Louis whilst the older boy only looked on with nervousness. Harry’s features held nothing but abhorrence for the newcomer. “Be in my chambers early tomorrow morning, come later than noon and you are fired. Understood?” Louis, feeling all sets of eyes in the room turned on him was too petrified to even speak, once again giving a brisk nod. “Good. Now get out of my sight.” Harry sank his body back into his chair dramatically while Louis scurried out of the hall and towards his own chambers for the night.

——

It was half eleven by the time Louis had been forcibly kicked out of his quarters by Simon. He had been trying to put off the inevitable trip to the prince’s room ever since he had woken early that morning. Louis could not believe how things had planned out. He was supposed to be keeping under the radar, staying as far as he could from the royal family. And somehow the entire world was working against him and he ended up working under the King’s son, the heir to the throne, who of course had to be a right bloody prick himself. He just had to get on with it though, Louis knew that, which is why he found himself determinately set out for the prince’s chambers to start his new job.

When Louis arrived however, a pair of knights clad in full battle-gear met him at the end of the corridor. As Louis attempted to reach the prince’s quarters, one of the guards stood to the side to block his passageway. “Well, well, well, what do we have here then?” He towered in front of Louis, smirk upon his lips. “What you doing up here, pretty boy?”

Louis never took well to insults, and was fully prepared to fight back with his words, in no fear due to the other boy’s clear size advantage. Gritting his teeth, the smaller boy stood tall in front of the guard, never letting his words falter. “I’m here to see the prince. I’m working for him now, and I’d like to get along so I can actually do my job efficiently and well unlike you two here.”

The guard’s face grew bright red with anger as he took a step closer to Louis and bent his face down to match the servant boy’s. “Oi listen here you little shit, I—“

“Tom! Calm the fuck down will you? I clearly told you that a new boy was coming in for Harry today, and when he did to just let him through. Now stop being a prick, and leave the boy alone.” Louis spun around at the introduction of a new voice and was met by a stunning dark haired boy with tanned skin to match. He spoke with a deep and commanding voice, and although appeared to be no older than Louis, also displayed to hold more authority than the other two slightly older knights. He was about Louis’ height as well and not much larger across, but unlike Louis his body seemed to consist of nothing but muscle. He too was clad in knights clothing without the additional metal armour encompassing his body.

The newcomer approached Louis, tossing his arm over the boy’s shoulders and steering him farther down the corridor and past the now-seething guards. It took Louis a few more seconds, but he was soon able to gather himself again after the strange encounter and turned to the dark boy. “Thanks for that, mate. The prince will kill me if I’m late; he’s already taken a disliking to me. I’m Louis, by the way. Louis Tomlinson.”

“Well hello Louis Tomlinson. Nice to meet you, I’m Zayn Malik. Oh and it was no problem. Yeah, Tom and Trent can be total dickheads most of the time. Best to steer clear of them; they’re not worth your attention.” After a few more moments, Zayn stopped them in front of a door and nodded his head towards it. “This here is the prince’s room. I’m Harry’s right-hand man, usually around being a general irritant to him, so I’m sure we’ll be seeing each again very soon. Nice to meet you, Louis! And good luck with that royal twat.” Louis laughed along with Zayn before giving the boy a quick ‘goodbye’, sucking in a deep breath and knocking loudly on the dark wooden door before him.


End file.
